мужской журнал о стиле и моде

Men’s shirts. The main types and ways to wear

How often do you wear a shirt? Only at official events? On a date? For work? Or you wear it every day with your favorite pair of jeans?

Sure, it is not as comfortable as a T-shirt but nevertheless it is an indispensable item at any man’s wardrobe. It is universal and it can be worn with anything. Simple and classic shirt goes perfectly with a suit or tuxedo, sport one – with jeans, “Hawaiian” – with shorts. Men’s shirts are divided not only on “colored”, “wrinkled” and “still OK to wear”. In addition to this generalized classification there are a number of important details: the type of collars and cuffs, fit and fabric. We will try to understand exactly what the shirt types are and what you can wear them with.

Types of shirts

Classic men’s shirt

Usually worn underneath a jacket or sweater but at the same time the combination with jumper is considered more informal and is inappropriate for business meetings. Classical shirt is usually worn with a tie. Fabric is thin and soft but collar is hard. Pockets are usually absent (or there is only one). Bottom has slightly curved shape. White and blue are the most popular colors.

It is important to keep in mind: the classic men’s shirt cannot be bright and will not contain prints (maximum is check or stripe). It is suitable for all figure types. The man of any body constitution can wear classic shirt.

Sport shirt

It is one of the most common types, the casual variant of the shirt. Is worn with any casual wear: with jeans, shorts or chinos. However, do not put it on underneath a business suit. The cloth of sport shirt is a bit rougher than classical. Sport shirts are usually decorated with pockets, zippers and epaulettes. It could be in different colors, with a variety of designs and patterns.

Hawaiian shirt

It features short sleeves, very bright colors and large floral prints. Is usually worn with shorts. It looks great on the beach and ridiculous in the office.

Types of fit

Loose shirt

Great disguise for Dad bods. Straight sides of this shirt conceal both: a belly or excessive sapless. It is worn as a casual and business wear (if a boss is not conservative, for example). It is OK if loose shirt is a size larger. Considered to be suitable for everyone.

Slim fit shirt

Slim fit shirt is tapering to the waist emphasizing the torso and shoulders. It is great for athletic men who are in a good shape. You’d better wear it on meeting of non-business nature: parties, dates and so on. A shirt like this is not recommended for the office.

But remember: it is hard to choose the perfect slim fit shirt so you’d better visit a good tailor.

The collar types

Classic is acute-angled collar. It goes well with a formal suit. It includes classic Tabs and Kent collars.

Wing. The collar is best worn with a bow tie. The points of the collar are turned downwards leaving the area for the bow tie. Shirts with this collar type look great with a tuxedo.

Mandarin. It is a narrow, stand-up collar, not quite meeting at the front. It looks good with a tunic.

There are other types of collars but if you are not going to become an expert in the collars for shirts it is enough for you to know what shirt to choose for a particular event.